Zverev in line for first ATP title in 2018 against Kohlschreiber

Alexander Zverev lets rip against Chung Hyeon at the Munich Open on Saturday. Photo: Matthias Schrader/AP

Defending champion Alexander Zverev advanced to the final of the Munich Open after a hard-fought 7-5 6-2 victory over South Korean’s Chung Hyeon on Saturday.

World number three Zverev will take on compatriot Philipp Kohlschreiber in Sunday’s all-German final.

Next Gen ATP Finals champion Chung was quick off the blocks in the semi-final clash and took a 3-0 lead, but top seed Zverev responded by winning five straight games.

The Korean levelled the scores, but Zverev was not affected by the attempted comeback and broke Chung’s serve for a third time en route to clinching the set.

Zverev continued his high-intensity approach in the second set and piled the pressure on his 21-year-old opponent, breaking Chung’s serve on two more occasions as he progressed to his second ATP final this year.

The German, who won his first title on home soil in Munich in 2017, will face Kohlschreiber in the final after the veteran eased to a 6-2 6-4 win over Maximilian Marterer in the other semi-final.

Marterer, 22, had not lost a set en route to the last four, but was no match for Kohlschreiber, who used his experience to cruise to victory in little over an hour.

Kohlschreiber, who is 34th in the world rankings, was slow to get off the mark as Marterer took a 2-1 lead in the first set, but the 34-year-old settled into his stride to win 20 of the next 23 available points and eventually, seal the set.

The three-times Munich Open champion took a 5-2 lead in the second set before Marterer attempted a comeback.

Kohlschreiber was unfazed by his opponent’s spirited efforts and closed out the match by winning four straight points.

Zverev, who was defeated by American John Isner at the Miami Open final in April, and Kohlschreiber will be targeting their first ATP title of the year.